Darron Lee, 31, who won a Super Bowl title with the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 season as well as a college football national championship with Ohio State in the 2014 campaign, is now facing a first-degree murder charge in Tennessee, according to a report by WTVC-TV News in Chattanooga.
The former NFL linebacker, a New York Jets first-round draft pick in 2016, was charged in connection with the death of a woman identified in the WTVC report as Lee’s girlfriend in Ooltewah, Tennessee, on Thursday.
The woman, whose name and age have not been released to the public, was found in a home less than a mile from Ooltewah Elementary School, according to a separate WTVC report.
After three seasons in New York, the Jets traded Lee to Kansas City. For the Chiefs, he played in 16 games in 2019, mostly on special teams. He was on the field for 241 special-teams snaps, but just 160 as a defensive player.
Lee Faced Previous Domestic Violence Charge
Lee was inactive for the Super Bowl, when the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers 31-20.
The linebacker had also been subject to two four-game suspensions in his five-year career, according to Spotrac, once for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy in 2018 when he was with the Jets, then again in September 2020 for reasons that the league did not disclose.
In 2023, Lee was arrested on a domestic violence charge in Ohio. In that incident, according to a police report cited by WTVC, Lee pushed a woman “against the wall, throwing her to the floor and striking her face and head 8 to 9 times with his closed fists.”
Two years later, Lee was allowed to strike a plea deal that dropped a felony domestic violence charge. Instead, Lee pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of aggravated assault.
Lee Claimed Victim Fell in Shower
According to a statement posted online by the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, on Thursday afternoon, “deputies were dispatched to a residence at the 7500 block of Snow Cone Way to a report of CPR in progress. Upon arrival, first responders located a female victim and attempted life-saving measures; it was determined she was deceased. Due to the condition of the victim and the residence, HCSO Criminal Investigative Services Detectives responded. Preliminary findings indicate the victimâs death was the result of a homicide.”
The statement said that Lee was identified as the suspect in the killing, and taken into custody. He now faces charges of first-degree murder as well as tampering with evidence, according to the sheriff’s office posting.
Gruesome Scene Detailed by Police
A police affidavit cited by WTVC described a gruesome scene inside the home.
“Investigators documented multiple injuries to the woman, including a suspected stab wound to the abdomen, severe bruising to her head and eyes, bruises on her arms and torso, and what appeared to be a human bite mark on her shoulder. Her body was taken to a forensic center for an autopsy,” according to the report.
The sheriff’s office statement said that Lee could still face additional charges. In the state of Tennessee, first-degree murder could carry the death penalty, if it is accompanied by any one of 18 specific aggravating circumstances.
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